Her cargo areas were capable of holding tanks, trucks, artillery and large warfare supply needs.

In October she deployed to reinforce Guantanamo base and earned the Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation just 70 days after commissioning.

[5] In support of Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm, Nassau deployed to the Middle East for over eight months on only eight days' notice.

These operations were in support of US foreign policy objectives; she also participated in numerous Navy and joint exercises that took her to numerous locations in the Atlantic, Mediterranean and Adriatic regions, including Haiti, Spain, Morocco, Italy, France, Greece, Israel, Albania, Zaire and Kosovo.

At 4:30 pm Central Time on Thursday, 18 September 2008, KHOU News 11 in Houston, Texas announced that Nassau was coming to the aid of Galveston Island, following the landfall of Hurricane Ike.

Nassau anchored 7 miles (11 km) offshore and troops deployed to the island with heavy machinery to aid with the clean-up of the devastation caused by the hurricane.

In January 2010, Nassau left her Virginia port carrying the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) on a routine deployment of approximately seven months.

[11] After completing its humanitarian efforts in Haiti, Nassau continued on its mission to the Middle East, eventually tying the all time Navy record of 159 consecutive days out to sea without a port call.

[12][13][14] In 2013 the non-profit organization Coalition of Hope announced plans to have the ship donated and operate her as a humanitarian vessel.